Mat Lindsay didn’t discover umami. Nor did he invent pickling, fermenting or wood-oven cooking. What he’s done, however, is meld these techniques and ideas into a cuisine that’s unequivocally his own, keeping Ester at the forefront of Sydney dining for more than a decade. Career-defining snacks, such as the blood sausage sanga and blistered potato bread with kefir cream, remain unimpeachable staples, but it’s the kitchen’s constant quest for depth of flavour that compels more than anything. Vegetable work is exquisite, evidenced by perfectly tender claypot-braised cauliflower in splendidly onion-rich sake broth. A roasted pork chop sprinkled with native spice, meanwhile, is meat at its most pared back, letting timing and temperature do all the talking. Stimulating raw wines and articulate service complete the picture – and if there’s a better dessert in the city for a tenner than the salted caramel parfait seasoned with a rubble of black sesame, then good luck finding it.
Ester
Australian
46-52 Meagher St, Chippendale
(02) 8068 8279
Chef Mat Lindsay & Nathan Brindle
Price guide $$
Bookings Recommended
Wheelchair access Yes
Open Lunch Sat-Sun; Dinner Tue-Sat
This review was written independently for the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide. The guide’s reviewers visit unannounced and pay their way. To learn more about the process, head over here.
Gourmet Traveller Annual Restaurant Guide
Our guide gives a yearly snapshot of the best restaurants to eat at right now. The best-rated restaurants, as judged by the reviewers’ first-hand experience, form our national guide.
